How to hire a packaging specialist

How to hire a packaging specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step packaging specialist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a packaging specialist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new packaging specialist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a packaging specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your packaging specialist job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a packaging specialist for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect packaging specialist also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   This list presents packaging specialist salaries for various positions.

   Type of Packaging Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Packaging Specialist		$12-45
   Cell Operator	A Cell Operator is someone who handles a production cell in a company or factory. This position ensures that a cell unit of the production functions properly and efficiently... Show more	$14-21
   Relief Operator	A relief operator job depends on the institution or organization. Their main jobs include examining, measuring, and weighing materials or products to verify conformance to specifications, using measuring devices such as rulers, micrometers, or scales... Show more	$17-24

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • DOD
   • Package Design
   • Logistics
   • Safety Policies
   • Continuous Improvement
   • GMP
   • Quality Standards
   • Technical Support
   • Quality Checks
   • Pallet Jack
   • Cost Savings
   • Product Quality
   • Hazardous Materials
   • Assembly Line

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a team of 16-35 to insure packaging lines are running to standards as far as USDA guidelines and company productivity.
   • Verified/Document product components; ensure compliance with quality standards and FDA and GMP procedures/guidelines.
   • Operate packaging equipment to produce quality products in a safe and efficient manner under OSHA, ISO, GMP procedures.
   • Train employees on ISO systems and procedures.
   • Perform and document all require QC checks.
   • Conduct quality checks and audits in coordination with QC.

   More packaging specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the packaging specialist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A packaging specialist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a packaging specialist in Oklahoma may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level packaging specialist. Additionally, a packaging specialist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average packaging specialist salary

   $50,146yearly

   $24.11 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level packaging specialist salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average packaging specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Pennsylvania	$78,520	$38
   2	California	$77,718	$37
   3	New Jersey	$70,944	$34
   4	Connecticut	$70,813	$34
   5	New York	$68,371	$33
   6	North Carolina	$66,360	$32
   7	Texas	$61,518	$30
   8	Illinois	$60,873	$29
   9	Oregon	$53,188	$26
   10	Georgia	$51,895	$25
   11	Ohio	$51,557	$25
   12	Kentucky	$49,731	$24
   13	Michigan	$48,150	$23
   14	Wisconsin	$47,048	$23
   15	Missouri	$46,910	$23
   16	Minnesota	$46,858	$23
   17	Florida	$46,497	$22
   18	Indiana	$45,565	$22
   19	Utah	$45,180	$22
   20	Tennessee	$44,733	$22

   Average packaging specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Zoetis	$100,477	$48.31	11
   2	Pfizer	$92,513	$44.48	3
   3	Los Alamos National Laboratory	$90,284	$43.41	2
   4	Daisy Brand	$85,930	$41.31
   5	IBM	$85,600	$41.15	11
   6	Aequor Technologies	$85,299	$41.01
   7	Florida Crystals	$84,253	$40.51
   8	Larsen & Toubro Infotech Limited Inc	$78,518	$37.75
   9	Teledyne Technologies Incorporated	$75,399	$36.25
   10	Leviton	$71,757	$34.50
   11	Perrigo	$68,493	$32.93	5
   12	Atlas Copco Drilling Solutions LLC	$68,179	$32.78
   13	Anheuser-Busch	$67,987	$32.69	6
   14	Raytheon Technologies	$60,536	$29.10	2
   15	Danaher	$55,693	$26.78	4
   16	Pactiv	$51,716	$24.86	12
   17	UGN	$51,424	$24.72
   18	PharmaAssociatesInc	$51,201	$24.62
   19	Tetra Pak	$50,666	$24.36
   20	Revolution Brewing	$50,020	$24.05

4. Writing a packaging specialist job description

   A packaging specialist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a packaging specialist job description:

   Packaging specialist job description example

   · Be able to lift up to 50lbs on your own.

   · Be able to Pass a Background Check and Drug Screen

   · HighSchool diploma or GED

   Benefits of the Picker/Packer

   ● Temp to Hire Position

   ● Benefits once hired perm.

   ● Active work enviornment

   Responsibilities of the Picker/Packer

   · Identifying and capturing packages that triggered the metal detectors.

   · Erecting cartons,

   shipping cases or displays and packaging the company’s various retail packages

   into them.

   · Constructing pallets

   of products utilizing the shipping cases previously filled in conformance with

   the designated pallet configuration for the item produced.

   · All packaging documentation

   must be completed in conformance with company guidelines

   · Maintaining and

   monitoring CCP and CQP.

   · Follow all plant

   safety and GMP rules and regulations.

   · Assist where needed

   · Ensures that all tasks and

   functions of position are performed in a safe manner at all times and that all

   procedures and requirements are properly followed to accomplish assigned tasks.

   · Food safety and quality as

   well as reporting food safety and quality problems to personnel with authority

   to initiate action.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find packaging specialists for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your packaging specialist job on Zippia to find and recruit packaging specialist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit packaging specialists, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new packaging specialist

   Once you've found the packaging specialist candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new packaging specialist. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a packaging specialist?